Week two.

So, here's a thought .. the majority of people reading this blog are on the other side of the world. I'm not completely sure how interweb works. I believe it involves wires, or waves, or possibly something I have no clue even exists. But these words, (and photos, once my cord arrives. yes, my third eye is still disconnected,) don't just disappear and reappear - right? They travel. Really, really far. 
Just a thought.
I've been here two weeks already. It feels longer, but it also feels like I just got here. I've started to master a few simple things. Kamsamnida, thank you, is more or less instinctual. I've also started dropping prepositions, which have become pretty useless. "Subway three o'clock?", accompanied by a few taps to the watch wearing area of the wrist, works a hundred times better than "Does the subway come at three o'clock?" Yesterday I told Jade, "head hurt." Wow. 
Miming is key. 
In the classroom, especially. The more classes I teach the more obvious it becomes that even if they have NO idea what you're saying, Korean students will nod "yes teacher!" So non-verbal communication is a huge part of my day. Occasionally I encounter words that are completely mental and therefore nearly impossible to act out, like chemical, which I accomplished with white board illustrations of Nyquil and Dayquil and a pretty good drunk/manic imitation. 
Last weekend was the first weekend I had free, so Jade and I made our way to Asan City, about an hour north. We went to Spavis, our first Asian spa. It was a waterpark (a pretty weak one) / indoor mega sauna. It was - interesting. 
I saw hundreds of naked Korean women, although I'm sure they had a lot more to say about the stark white American in the neon purple bathing suit. We spent about 15 minutes in the Yellow Sea, searching for the exit, before we finally discovered the "waterpark." Koreans want their skin LIGHT - even makeup has lighteners in it- so most of the park was shaded. Great. A large pool, which we were able to enter only after  finding life jackets and bathing caps, seemed to be the only sunny area. Not long after we got in, a loud (everything is loud here) Korean announcer screeched something over the PA system. People started shifting, some got out, but others acted casual - like nothing was going on. Then, the waves started. Wtf. Gigantic wave pool. Korea does not want me to get a tan. 
Despite the hassles, I left feeling great - pores purged and semi-tan. We had a bit of trouble getting back to the train station, and ended up walking 2 or 3 miles in a semi-rural area. Things look so different on foot, compared to the perspective you get at 40mph. Roses are pretty wild here, and they're everywhere - I love it. Gingko, too. They're the Korean Oak - lining every street and popping up as seedlings throughout the grass.
The food situation is getting better, 7-11's here sell 3inch long triangular rice pattys topped with various meat substances and wrapped in seaweed. They're about 75cents and I crave them. Onion rings are a million times better than the ones at home. Korean bbq, which takes getting used to since you are expected to cook and assemble it on your own, is less exhausting. Korean sushi - kimbop- is not as good as Japanese, but ridiculously cheap (less than 2$) and I like it. 
Hopefully I will have internet and phone this week, I got my ARC card today. Which means lots of Skyping with you staters - so send me your id.


xo.